John Boehner is promising that the Republicans will soon produce a health care plan "that will provide access to all Americans to high quality health insurance." Atrios replies, "Given the quality of media coverage of policy debates they're probably making the right move. There are different plans, and, hey, who can tell which will work. It's all so confusing and boring. Hillary cackled!"
That's exactly right. These plans exist to toss static into the discussion and make it seem as if there are two viable, existent options, one of which costs a lot of money and is really scary, and one of which involves no money, changes, or actual improvements, but will still solve everything, forever.
That said, the reason the Republicans are jumping into this debate is that they're scared. The Democrats need to viscerally recognize that this issue is moving in their direction, get the Republicans on the record supporting reform, and then brutally attack them until they actually vote for reform. We know which plans will work and which won't. We know which plans are proportionate to the problem and which aren't. The question won't be how good our policies are, but how good our political strategy is. And what the Right is showing here isn't that they want to have a serious conversation about the issue, but that they sense their own weakness on the issue. Democrats have to be prepared to capitalize, and if the Republican plan is nothing more than a pathetic tax exemption, Democrats have to be willing to say so, and use that puny, cruel, cynical policy offering to force Republicans to the table.
Health care reform will pass when obstruction ceases to be politically safe. It's up to the Democrats to make that the case.